Rainbow Wahine put Aggies in their place
POSTED: Sunday, September 28, 2008
The knock on the shorter 25-point sets in college volleyball this season has been the belief it eliminates the ability for teams to rally when down big late.
No. 7 Hawaii (11-2, 4-0 WAC) at San Jose State (6-8, 2-2),When: Tomorrow, 4 p.m. Hawaii time,
Radio: KKEA, 1420-AM
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No. 7 Hawaii disproved that in a big way yesterday against Western Athletic Conference rival New Mexico State. The Rainbow Wahine came back from an 18-13 deficit in Set 3 to outscore the host Aggies 12-5 and complete a 26-24, 25-20, 25-23 sweep in front of 2,347 at the Pan American Center.
It took just 95 minutes for Hawaii (11-2, 4-0) to take over sole possession of first place in the WAC. It was also the first time the Wahine have swept the Aggies in Las Cruces, N.M., since a 15-1, 15-13, 15-3 victory in 1993 when both were in the Big West.
Senior hitter Jamie Houston finished with a match-high 16 kills and junior hitter Aneli Cubi-Otineru had her second double-double (10 kills, 12 digs). Senior libero Tara Hittle added a career-high four aces for the Wahine, who had gone five with the Aggies in their last four visits here.
“;The team talked about it, saying why don't we just sweep and get out of there,”; UH coach Dave Shoji said after the Wahine's 10th straight victory. “;It was kind of a joke because of how our matches with them have been going. Every game was tough. We feel fortunate that we did get out with a sweep.”;
One play did have the Hawaii players laughing, a play that Shoji credits for sparking the Set 3 rally. Down 18-14, the ball Ping-Ponged around the UH defense, hitting Stephanie Ferrell—who was on the floor—and landing on the Aggie side of the court for one of her nine kills to make it 18-15.
“;It was such a ridiculous play, a fluke,”; NMSU coach Mike Jordan said. “;It was on a long rally, we had an overpass that we dinked and the ball comes back over.
“;Hawaii was just better than we were tonight. They were better at serve-and-pass and we struggled with serve-receive. And Hawaii's outside hitters are better at attacking out of system than they were last season.”;
Hawaii's middles were also effective, with Amber Kaufman and Nickie Thomas both finishing with eight kills on 16 attempts with one error.
Lindsey Yon led NMSU (8-7, 3-1) with 11 kills. Hawaii-born Krystal Torres, the Aggies senior libero, had 11 digs, below her 4.35 dps average.
Hawaii freshman hitter Kanani Herring (sprained left ankle) only played in the back row.
“;She's about 80 percent,”; Shoji said. “;If she's not needed (against San Jose State tomorrow), we won't use her.”;
Cubi-Otineru, the other injured Wahine (broken nose), took off her protective mask after Set 1.
“;All I know is I looked down and it was on the chair next to me,”; Shoji said.
Hawaii def. New Mexico State
26-24, 25-20, 25-23
Rainbow Wahine (11-2, 4-0)
| g | k | e | att | pct | d | bs | ba | pts |
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| Kaufman | 3 | 8 | 1 | 16 | .438 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| Herring | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Houston | 3 | 16 | 6 | 37 | .270 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 15 |
| Thomas | 3 | 8 | 1 | 16 | .438 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 8.5 |
| Mafua | 3 | 2 | 0 | 4 | .500 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Cubi-Otineru | 3 | 10 | 6 | 23 | .174 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 10 |
| Ferrell | 3 | 9 | 5 | 21 | .190 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 10.5 |
| Hittle | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | -1.000 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Keefe | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kaaihue | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Brandt | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Totals | 3 | 53 | 20 | 118 | .280 | 37 | 2 | 2 | 56 |
New Mexico State (8-7, 3-1)
| g | k | e | att | pct | d | bs | ba | pts |
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| Birmingham | 3 | 4 | 1 | 6 | .500 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 5 |
| Gintant | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | .500 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Woods | 3 | 5 | 3 | 10 | .200 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 5.5 |
| Yon | 3 | 11 | 6 | 37 | .135 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 10.5 |
| Altermatt | 3 | 8 | 1 | 19 | .368 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 8.5 |
| Simpson | 3 | 9 | 2 | 17 | .412 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 10.5 |
| Torres | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Devries | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 5 | 0 | 0 | -1 |
| Goodan | 3 | 3 | 1 | 8 | .250 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 |
| Totals | 3 | 41 | 14 | 99 | .273 | 36 | 0 | 10 | 44 |
Key—g: games; k: kills; e: hitting errors; att: attempts; pct: hitting percentage; d: digs; bs: block solo; ba: block assists; pts: points (kills + blocks + aces - service errors)
Aces—Hawaii (5): Hittle 4, Mafua. New Mexico State (0): none. Assists—Hawaii (48): Mafua 41, Herring 4, Thomas, Hittle, Brandt. New Mexico State (40): Gintant 20, Devries 15, Torres 2, Birmingham, Woods, Altermatt. T—1:35. Officials—Syd Church, Craig Smith. A—2,347.
WAC Standings
| W | L | Pct. | GB | All |
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| Hawaii | 4 | 0 | 1.000 | — | 11-2 |
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| New Mexico St. | 3 | 1 | .750 | 1 | 8-7 |
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| Utah State | 2 | 1 | .500 | 1 1/2 | 4-10 |
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| Fresno St. | 2 | 2 | .667 | 2 | 5-8 |
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| San Jose St. | 2 | 2 | .333 | 2 | 6-8 |
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| Boise St. | 1 | 2 | .500 | 2 1/2 | 4-9 |
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| Idaho | 1 | 2 | .000 | 2 1/2 | 8-6 |
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| Nevada | 1 | 3 | .333 | 3 | 5-7 |
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| Louisiana Tech | 0 | 3 | .000 | 3 1/2 | 2-8 |
Wednesday
Boise State def. Idaho State, 14-25, 25-20, 25-16, 25-23
Thursday
Hawaii def. Louisiana Tech, 25-11, 25-20, 25-16
Fresno State def. Utah State, 25-22, 25-22, 17-25, 13-25, 15-13
New Mexico State def. Idaho, 25-19, 25-18, 25-16
San Jose State def. Nevada, 26-24, 23-25, 22-25, 25-12, 15-7
Yesterday
Hawaii def. New Mexico State 26-24, 25-20, 25-23
Idaho def. Boise State 25-13, 23-25, 22-25, 25-14, 15-9
San Jose State def. Fresno State 25-19, 25-15, 25-22
Utah State def. Nevada 25-11, 17-25, 24-26, 25-22, 18-16
Today
Nevada at UNLV
